Musings of the Next Generation
by AGirlWithTheBrokenSmile
Summary: A series of one-shots about the Next Generation kids-from Lysander to Lily. Latest: What happens when Lily and Victoire get into a fight about love?


**Musings of the Next Generation**

**First Story: It's Not Worth It. **

**By: Lily**

**Summary: What happens when Victoire and Lily get into a fight about love? **

**Character(s)/Pairing(s): Lily and Victoire, unrequited Lily/Scorpius**

"Oh, and you won't _believe _what happened next!" Victoire exclaimed, her bright blue orbs shining with excitement and anticipation.

Lily resisted the urge to yawn, and instead settled for laying her head down gently on the old wooden table, rubbing her eyes after doing so. "Let me guess," she began, her voice hoarse, and dripping with impatience for her bubbly, sappy cousin's usual antics. "He pulled out a bouquet of flowers and _gushed _about how much he just _adores you_." She shifted her head position and bit back an annoyed sigh.

If Victoire detected the impatience and annoyance in her younger cousin's voice, she didn't make any sign that she did. Instead, she just shook her head, her shiny blonde hair swishing past her head perfectly, not a strand out of place as it cascaded down her back. "Close," she answered, happiness still evident in her tone. She leaned forward and whispered quietly, a huge grin spread across her face, "He handed me a box of chocolates from _Madame Flaes _and asked me to move in with him!"

She then proceeded to clap her hands together with a smack and squeal girlishly, giggling uncontrollably afterwards. Lily winced from the two sounds as they reached her hyper-sensitive ears. She wasn't feeling quite well that day. In fact, she had a particularly nasty headache that just wouldn't leave her be, despite the potion her mother had given her earlier that morning. Even Lily's usual antidote-orange juice and peppers-had no effect, and she was now forced to suffer terribly from the intense pounding in her head. It was as if she was having a hangover…not that she knew what one felt like, of course. She'd simply seen the aftermath of a particularly "hard core" Gryffindor Quidditch Cup party, and knew what firewhiskey did to its victims when they woke up in the morning. Lily had never liked firewhiskey-she'd tried it once when she was fifteen, and had detested the burning in her throat that she experienced when drinking it; unlike James, who seemed to enjoy it far, far too much. Of course, said boy was of age, now, so there was really no stopping him.

Deciding that it was rude to leave Victoire without an equally-joyful response to her news, Lily summed up the little strength she had and lifted her head off the table, rubbing her bloodshot eyes. She gave Victoire what she hoped was a cheerful smile and said happily, "I'm so glad for you, Vic! It's about time, you know. We've all been waiting for Teddy to ask you. Who knows? Maybe he'll propose soon!"

Lily hoped that Victoire wouldn't see straight through her; that she'd simply flash a blinding smile and immediately agree, ready to continue with her gushing about Teddy, and how he was the _perfect _boyfriend, and how no one could ever compare to him.

But this wish was, unfortunately, not granted for the sixteen year-old redhead. Because even Victoire wasn't that stupid. Sure, she was girly, giggly, sappy and her brain had been partially romance-ruined, but she most certainly wasn't stupid. In fact, she was a Ravenclaw, and was actually quite intelligent.

So, in fact, Lily wasn't _that _surprised when Vic's expression immediately softened and she asked quietly, concern evident in her bell-like voice, "Lily, what's wrong? Did I say something?"

Victoire looked so guilty and concerned for Lily's well-being that said girl immediately felt terrible. Who was she to think so low of Victoire? She was only happy that her long-time boyfriend had given her a sign that he might propose soon; she had every single right to be happy, and Lily should be happy for her, too. But she wasn't. As hard as she tried, she just wasn't. She wasn't _not _happy for Victoire. No, that wasn't the case at all. She just didn't _care. _As sick as it sounded, Victoire's love life held absolutely no importance to her. It just didn't matter; not with all the other much more important things in her life. She hated that she felt this way, but she just couldn't help it.

It was the truth, after all. In a few months, she would be going to Hogwarts for her last year of magical education. She needed to be completely and positively focused on studying and working hard in class so she could pass her N.E.W.T.'s. She was set on being a Transfiguration teacher, and she couldn't let anything else get in the way. And that included Victoire and Teddy's relationship status. When it came to choosing which was more important, the answer was easy and obvious. Her education knocked Vic and Teddy out of the park, into the field in the back of her mind which held the less-vital situations that existed in her life.

"Lily? _Li-ly. _Are you alright? Lily?" Victoire's concerned voice snapped Lily out of her thoughts, and said girl's head snapped over to face Victoire.

"Yeah, Vic?" She asked, her voice a little higher than normal. She cleared her throat, hoping Vic hadn't noticed.

"I asked if you were okay." Victoire answered slowly, her concern rate going up as she spoke.

Lily nodded, her cheeks burning with embarrassment…or was it an oncoming cold? Who knew… "Oh, right." She answered, as if having a sudden realization. "Yeah, I'm fine. I've just got a little headache." She tapped the side of her head for good measure, and winced at the pain that shot through her brain when she did so.

Victoire rolled her eyes, obviously not convinced. She scooted her wooden chair up next to Lily's, who winced once more at the sound it made. "It's Scorpius, isn't it?" Victoire questioned, her expression sympathetic. Lily resisted the urge to scowl; she hated sympathy with a burning passion. She didn't need people feeling sorry for her. It made her feel weak and pathetic, which, in her mind, were most definitely not good feelings. At all.

Lily shook her head quickly and responded, "No, of course not! I wasn't even thinking of him, I swear." It was true, too. She indeed _hadn't _been thinking of Scorpius Malfoy. She'd been thinking about how she was a terrible person because she didn't really care for her cousins' social lives. In fact, Scorpius hadn't once crossed her mind that day until the very moment in which Victoire brought him up. She inwardly scowled; why had Victoire ruined it all? It would've been the first day in her life, since she was eleven, that she hadn't once thought of Scorpius Hyperon _bloody _Malfoy.

Maybe she really _was _pathetic.

Victoire didn't respond for a few seconds. She simply sat there silently, staring Lily down, who began to grow uncomfortable with her cousin's intense look.

Then, she stated, "You still love him."

Lily flinched, and mentally cursed herself for doing so. Even after all these years, the _word _still made her cringe.

Love. It disgusted Lily. She'd seen what it could do to people. Sure, for some people it worked out; like for her parents, or Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione. But cases like theirs were rare. For most, love was the _biggest _lie of all time. It only brought on tragedy. Look at Romeo and Juliet-they both _died _for love. It made Lily absolutely, positively _sick. _What idiot-what _fool_-would die for such a thing? Why would someone take their life for something that mostly destroys and causes havoc? It was blasphemy, that's what it was.

"I don't _love _him," Lily spat, not bothering to cover up the venom oozing in her voice. "It was just a silly little crush that I had, back when I was a naïve little girl." She shot Victoire a long, hard, hateful look. "I know better, now. Love isn't worth it. It's not worth a _single _thing."

Victoire looked shocked. She shook her head at Lily's statement and replied, "How could you say that, Lils? Look at your parents, look at Ron and Hermione, look at-"

"Yeah, well, look at all the people that had to die in order for that to happen!" Lily exclaimed, sitting up in her chair. All traces of her headache had vanished, and she was now filled with a consuming rage that burned inside her veins. "So _many _people died, Vic! Uncle Fred, Teddy's parents, _my father's parents_! If my grandparents hadn't been so in _love_, Grandpa would've let Voldemort pass, and my dad would at _least _have a father!"

Victoire stood up, her chair scooting backwards, and Lily followed suit. "How _dare _you speak like that, Lily!" Victoire shouted, her previously fair skin now a shade of red. "How dare you speak of Lily and James like that! It's completely disrespectful. To them, _and_ to your father!"

Lily was fuming, her face completely red with rage as well. She felt as if her blood was boiling; never had she felt so furious in her life. "Who are _you _to tell me what's disrespectful and what's not?"

Victoire scoffed, crossing her arms. "I am an _adult, _Lily. In case you didn't know, most adults know _much _better than children."

Lily didn't even attempt to calm herself down. She was much too far gone to do that. "Victoire, you barely even _qualify _as adult! You're just a naïve brat that's stuck in a silly little fairy-tale world, where you has the _perfect _boyfriend, the _perfect _family and the perfect _life_! I'm sorry to break it to you, Vic, but fairy-tales don't exist! You're not going to get a happy ending, unlike what you seem to believe, because there's no such thing as happy endings!"

Victoire looked disgusted, but there was also a bit of sympathy sketched into her expression. When she spoke, her tone was barely above a whisper. "What's happened to you, Lily? What made you turn out like this?"

Lily was shaking, now, but there were tears streaming down her face. "_I grew up!_" She exclaimed, her voice shaky. "Maybe you should try it sometime."

Victoire laughed humorlessly, and all traces of sympathy that had previously inhabited her face disappeared. "Lily, I think _you're _the one that needs to grow up. You're the naïve one. You _think _you know what love is, but you don't. Love is a beautiful thing, and you need to-"

Lily interrupted her with a sarcastic laugh. "_Love_," she hissed, her words drowned in disgust, "is anything but beautiful, Victoire. That's what needs to be realized. Love only hurts, destroys, and-"

"You know what I think, Lily?" Victoire cut in. She didn't wait for an answer before continuing. "I think that Scorpius choosing Rose cut you _so _deep, that you've completely cut it out your life. He hurt you so bad that you're refusing to listen to anyone's opinion on love. You think that just because love didn't work out for you, it won't work out for anyone. You're just too thick to realize it."

In that moment, Lily wanted nothing more than to pound Victoire into the wall; to make her take back what she had just said to her. "I'm not thick!" She protested, her light brown eyes blazing with fury.

Victoire shook her head, that sympathetic look back on her face. Or was it pity? At the moment, Lily didn't quite car which one it was, considering the fact that she hated them both. "Denying it just proves that you are."

Lily wanted to scream. She wanted to punch something or someone, preferably Victoire. She clenched her fists, willing herself to stay calm.

But it wasn't working. No, it most certainly was _not _working. She took a step forward, expecting Victoire to take one, too.

But she didn't. She just stood there, shaking her head sadly at Lily. Said girl hated the way that her cousin was looking at her; it was like, in Victoire's eyes, she was nothing but a silly child. But she wasn't! She had seen _far _worse than her uncorrupted cousin had. Victoire had been sheltered her whole life-from the horrors and sadness in the world. Now that she was of age and had moved into her own house, she was beginning to realize what was really out there-Lily could tell. But Aunt Fleur was still reluctant to let her go-she was still trying to protect her eldest daughter. At least Dominique knew how hard life could get. She may be younger, but she was a _lot _bloody wiser than Victoire. Dom had seen true sadness, pain and heartbreak. She didn't pretend that life was perfect; she wanted nothing from life but the truth-the _whole _truth.

Lily took another step closer-than another, and another, until she was nose to nose with Victoire. "I am _not _thick." Lily stated, her voice a deadly whisper. "I am not _naïve_, and I'm not a silly little girl. You've barely begun to realize that life isn't perfect. It's not fair, either. _You're _the naïve one."

Lily turned around and walked towards the door to leave the room, but not before Vic's soft voice spoke up.

"Why do you still wear the necklace he gave you?"

Lily slammed the door behind her.

**I really enjoyed writing this one. I've always loved writing Lily; I like how, in the books, she's young and naïve-this gave me the impression that, of course, she'll have to grow up somehow, right?**

**This fic will be multi-chaptered. I got the idea for the title from the X-Files episode called, "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man." **

**I would really appreciate it if you reviewed. I would love, love, **_**love **_**some feedback on this one. I spent a lot of time on it, and I want to know if it's any good. **

**:)**

**-Lily**


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